Loki's Return
by Zelda-rox12
Summary: Loki's returned, and he trying to rule Earth. Again. And he gets captured by SHIELD. Again. But, being the god that he is, he escapes. Again. Only this time, he has with him an ally, who may be more powerful than what she's letting on... Rated T for language.
1. Caught, Escaped, Loki's back

**I do not own Avengers or Loki. Sadly. **

"I'm starting think I should keep getting captured just to see the imprisonments you mortals come up with," Loki smirked, watching Thor and Director Fury glide away slowly on their hoverpad.  
This was definitely more interesting than what they had locked him in before, Loki thought, his gaze sliding around the new form of jail for him. The domed ceiling far above him was transparent, but probably made of something much stronger than glass.  
'As if they thought I would reach it,' Loki growled in his mind.  
It was what was below him that he had to worry about. Apart from the small floating platform upon which he stood, there was only darkness beneath. From the edges of the dome, smooth steel pressed against the walls of what appeared to be a bottomless pit.  
"Twenty rows of three-foot spikes at the bottom," Director Fury said coldly. He and Thor were at the edge of the pit, ready to unlock the door and leave. "If you don't believe me, go throw yourself down there to check," His voice echoed along the metal walls. Loki said nothing. He was glaring at his demi-god 'brother', who matched his gaze with the same intensity.  
'We are not brothers' Loki thought, wanting so badly to shout at him. Thor seemed just as angry, but there was disappointment in his face as well, which made Loki even more enraged.  
'How dare he still look at me like I'm nothing but a mess, a stain on his precious Midguard. How dare he treat me like a kid!' Loki found himself on the verge of growling, snarling with anger, and calmed himself immediately. He couldn't look unhinged and incapable, like a child throwing a tantrum. For the time being, he needed to be one step ahead of these Avengers. And if he wasn't, he would need to act like it.  
Director Fury clicked a small button on his control pad, and Loki felt the heavy metal bracelets on his wrists fuse into handcuffs. His left wrist was bent uncomfortably, and it didn't feel like he'd be adjusting it any time soon.  
Fury punched a code in the control panel and the heavy iron doors slid open. He stalked out, into a dimly lit tunnel, not looking back. Thor stayed only moments longer, pausing just to look back at Loki with disappointment that mirrored Odin's tired face. Loki scowled at him.  
"You are not my father, Thor!" He hissed. "And you're not my brother either,"  
Thor turned away and walked in the direction Fury had gone. Loki only glimpsed the crimson of his billowing cape before the doors slid shut once more.  
Loki had, for a third time, returned to Midguard; this time as unnoticed as possible. Or so he had hoped. But again, Loki was taken captive under SHIELD control.  
This time, it was different. Loki could tell these Avengers were no longer a thrown-together group of 'heroes'; creating a disturbance among them would be difficult. And even if he was able to destroy the ties of their team, it would still leave him in captivity. Unlike on that giant airship, Loki had no close contact with the Avengers, no way to get close to them here.  
He was, pathetically, without a plan.  
Loki sat, cross-legged, on the cold metal serving as his lifeline. It was nearly long enough for him to lay down on if needed. But he didn't. Loki just stayed still, trying to appear expressionless. It was clear that cameras were probably watching him, recording with actions with lifeless eyes. Loki could not afford to be in the disadvantage. One step ahead... One step ahead...  
Smooth metal all around. If he were to jump, Loki wouldn't make it to the edges. And even if he did, with handcuffed hands, he wouldn't be able to take any handholds.  
No, direct escape was not Loki's forte. It was the mind manipulation that saved him from getting his hands dirty.  
But Fury was taking that precaution. Chances are, the only contact with the outside world was going to be through the video cameras.  
Loki let loose the smallest of sighs. Patience. If escape wasn't possible now, it would be later on. Patience...

It had to be at least a day later when Loki's eyes and ears caught on the sound of the iron doors opening. He raised his head slowly, expression indicating not surprise or question but a slight of amused boredom. It became hard to retain this expression when he saw who entered the room. He had been taken by surprise.  
No one he knew. Not the Avengers, not Director Fury. A young woman. Long, straight, dark brown hair. Skin pale enough to rival Loki's ivory complexion. He had seen her before, watching him being led to captivity, a large black sketchbook tucked under her arm. It was with her now, and she held it protectively in one arm against her chest.  
Loki couldn't see from here, but he knew her eyes were black and wide. Eyes of prey, fearful and nervous. Fear mixed with something else. It was the type of eye Loki wanted to see in his subjects. Fear was a friend to power. Your subjects fear you, they do what you say.  
Loki opened his mouth to say something, but the girl nervously held a finger to her lips. It was the strangest thing. She wore a SHIELD outfit, but she appeared to be doing something she shouldn't be. Helping him, maybe? If so, it was in some weird way Loki could not identify.  
She was drawing. Her sketchbook was open, and a pencil was dancing lightly across the blank pad. Loki was at the wrong angle to see what was appearing on the paper, but from the way her eyes darted to the walls, the dome, to him, she could only be sketching the scene in front of her.  
"You snuck in here... To draw a picture?" Loki smirked, amusement playing across his face. Mortals. He'd never understand them.  
She tapped her finger to her lips, plead in her eyes. Loki smirked again, but kept silent. Cameras. He couldn't care less if she got caught, but he did want to see how this played out.  
Her picture must have been pretty damn accurate. She kept looking back at Loki, studying his face for a few frightened, but curious moments, before yanking her head back down to the page. Half an hour passed by with no let up in the scratching of lead on paper.  
Never had Loki felt so impatient. Something was happening; there had to be a reason for this girl, apart from a picture. This wasn't getting him anywhere. Besides, if she wanted to draw a picture, couldn't she have looked at the camera footage?  
Maybe Fury was trying to get something out of him, but Loki could not see the angle he was playing. Another ten minutes slipped by. Loki began to abandon hope of interesting events.  
The sounds of sketching fell silent. The girl was looking from her sketchbook to Loki, her eyes flitting around beneath long, dark lashes. She added a couple light lines, erased something, and then just stared. Stared at the drawing, liked in some form of trance.  
Loki's fingers were twitching. He did not want to wait here. Personally, he wanted to see his picture. Bit of a vanity thing, but he hadn't been around mirrors for awhile. Pictures were a step in the direction of statues, after all.  
She stood up, her eyes still on the paper. Loki remained motionless, watching her with a furrowed brow. She wasn't leaving... She had her hand on the page and was surveying the scene in front of her. And then her hand and the sketchbook glowed blue.  
This caught Loki's attention. Magic? Was this slight of a mortal really capable of magic?  
The glowing faded, and Loki looked around. Nothing had changed. Well, that was a bit of a disappointment. Maybe the glowing was just some light trick.  
The girl had changed though. She had lost a lot of the nervous demeanor and began to sketch something quickly on the next page. In under three minutes, she finished and had her hand on the page again. More blueish glowing, and this time...  
Loki raised an eyebrow. A row of white platforms appeared across the gap between the girl and Loki.  
The god stood quickly, looking at this new bridge to freedom. The platforms were strange. Paper white, no logos or design whatsoever. The girl hadn't pressed any buttons. She had just... Loki's eyes widened. She had drawn them.  
He watched in mild amazement as the girl ran across the platforms. Unlike Fury's hoverpad, they didn't sink slightly under her weight. They were as still and solid as regular ground.  
Loki could only assume she was getting him out. So, without having to be told, he turned and held out his handcuffs to her. She pulled out something that resembled a narrow, but long, cleaver. For some reason, it could hack through the metal. Maybe some other magic device.  
"Cameras?" He asked softly, feeling the knife begin to make it through the cuffs.  
"Covered." She said. Her voice was soft, low, but had an assured edge that Loki was surprised existed in such a timid looking girl. Her pixie size didnt help; he was at least five, maybe six inches taller. The handcuffs clattered from Loki's wrist, a twisted mess of metal. He kicked them in disgust off the edge of his platform. The knife the young woman used glowed blue in her palm and then vanished.  
"They will only see this," She held up the picture she had drawn. Loki saw himself, sitting cross-legged on the platform, his back hunched but eyes bright and defiant under his eyebrows. "Just a projection of what Fury expects to see," The sketchbook glowed blue again. Loki looked to see an identical of himself sitting behind them. Much like his projections, it was not solid. It was just sitting there, like he had been moments earlier.  
"What is that?" Loki asked, indicating the book.  
"A sketchbook," She said simply.  
"And what are you?"  
"An Artist," It sounded like much more than a skilled drawer, the way she said it. A being, a spirit. Something with significance.  
"Clearly," Loki nodded. The sketch was very professional, even by his standards. She smiled in thanks, then flipped back a couple pages.  
On the left page was a drawing of a SHIELD agent uniform, identical to the one she was wearing.  
"You drew yourself an outfit?" Loki asked. She nodded, but was paying attention to the right side picture. Another SHIELD agent outfit, but specifically one the pilots wore. She placed her hand on the sketch, and it glowed blue.  
Loki felt his leather clothing shift into the slightly tighter, more uncomfortable SHIELD agent outfit. The pilot's suit came with a helmet with a tinted visor. As he walked out, no one would see his face.  
"You've thought this through," Loki admired. She smiled again, but her eyes still avoided his. Modest girl.  
"You didn't seem like you had a plan" The young woman countered, with a hint of a Scottish accent. Not much, just a small edge.  
Loki didn't deny the truth, he had not had a plan, but decided not to confirm this. He lowered the visor and followed the girl across her bridge to the door. She opened her sketchbook to the page of her most recent drawing. Next to Loki's captivity was a row of five, hastily drawn, platforms. She erased these, and the platforms disappeared in a smoky mist. Like graphite. It was interesting…  
"Follow me," She motioned, walking out the door with Loki close behind. "We're going to the hangar. There's a quinjet waiting," Now the pilot outfit was making even more sense. But this was perfect. He had an ally stationed in Los Angeles. She could easily fly him there, and he would return to the previous plan, the one he had before he was recaptured.  
She led him through a series of passages and doors before finally they reached a set of stairs leading to the hangar. No one cowered in fear as Loki walked past them. Nobody leaped to arrest him and return him to his jail. He was just another pilot. Personally, he didn't like it quite as much.  
They boarded a quinjet, with the girl at the main controls. She flipped some switches, pulled some controls, and some other mortal complexities Loki couldn't identify. The point was, they flew out without trouble. They were out of SHIELD control. Loki was free.


	2. Asha, Loki's New Best Friend

**Thanks for reading to Chapter 2. Much appreciated :)**

**Oh, and sorry it took so long to update. Two week sleep-away camp...**

"So why did you do it?" Loki asked when they were coasting through the clouds. "Risk your career to get me out?" She kept her eyes on the sky, as though too afraid to look at him. So she did fear him...

"I think you have the right idea," She said thoughtfully. Of course he did. It seemed strange, different, to finally find someone who wasn't his enemy. This entire realm seemed to be against him. Until now. Finally, a loyal subject. "Earth really does need a world leader. A powerful, knowledgeable ruler. It would eliminate war between countries, if everyone's under the same rule. You're a god with an interest in the throne. I doubt anyone would make a better king," There was a slight of blush on her cheeks as she spoke.

"That," Loki smiled, laying a hand on her shoulder, feeling her heart beat a slight faster with surprise. "That is the kind of logic I'm looking for." She smiled.

"Three years ago, my brother was in Stuttengard, and he sent me a video of you, your speech, you in your armor and power. I was," She paused, dark eyes sparkling, her long brown hair attempting to hide the pink gathering on her cheeks. "inspired? Moved? I was already into the world ruler idea, but now I knew who it had to be," She sighed happily, then looked, almost nervously, at Loki. "I'm not overdoing this, am I?" Not at all. This was words Loki had been secretly searching for. Words of praise and respect to him. Finally, someone who was on his side, his view of Earth. Excellent.

Loki chuckled. "No worries. Good to have someone on my sight of things. What about that sketchbook of yours?" She didn't protest when he slid it from her lap and flipped through the pages. The first drawings looked like experiments. Toys, like stuffed animals and lifelike figures, in different positions. X's and checks were in the corner of them. She had been testing it, figuring out how the book worked, how she could control the world around her.

"I was testing its power," She explained, as if echoing Loki's thoughts. "It's a regular sketchbook, regular pencil, regular paper. The power is mine. To draw or paint and have creations actually work in the real world. It's incredible. It's not easy though," She added, voice lowering. Loki saw her dark eyes glance at him firmly, as if warning him. "Modifying something in the real world. The drawing has to be realistic enough for my mind's eye to understand and apply to real objects. If it lacks to much detail, I get confused and won't be able to recognize the subject." Which is why she took so long to complete his picture for the cameras to see. All the detail, the accuracy. "In simplest terms, what I create on the paper is created in front of me," Loki nodded. It was magic, very powerful magic. Magic connecting her to her artwork. Some may have called it impossible, but hadn't Loki seen greater?

"So where are we going?" Loki inquired, looking across the cloudless skies. The girl bit her lip, and her eyes lowered. Something was wrong. She was failing him, but she knew it. She knew that to displease him was unacceptable. But that was good.

"I can't take you where you need to go," She said. "A hangar near my apartment. Chances are, Fury's tracking this jet. I go anywhere else but the place I was supposed to go and they'll get suspicious. I'm sorry,"

"Understandable," Loki said, a little frusterated but not much. All he really needed was to get to his scepter in LA. This was just a slight delay. "Do you mind if I stay at your apartment tonight?"

"N-not at all," She stammered. "I'd be honored," Honored is right. Loki smiled, pulling off his SHIELD helmet and reclining a little in his chair. Perfect. This was what he needed. Her loyalty could not be questioned. Still, he needed to know more about her. Why was she working with SHIELD? And couldn't there still be a chance this was all a trap?

"Why is Fury keeping such an attentive eye on you?" He kept his tone casual, but his eyes traveled to her. She sighed, then opened her mouth to speak. All of this girl's past, her memories and lifetime, knowledge a felt so open to him. Just the right question at the right timing and she would spill her secrets to Loki, her god, her leader. So easily.

That is how things should be, Loki thought. I should have access to the mind of every one of my subjects.

He was digging into this girl's head. And he loved what he found there.

"There are people out there," She said. "Who believe a world leader would be beneficial, like me. People who want to be ruled. Whoever they are, they made somethnig like a website for it." People who want to be ruled... Perfect. "And I contributed to conversations on it, with you in mind. With the idea that you could be our king. However," Her gripped tightened on the handle. "Fury, or someone in SHIELD, found out about the site. And I was suspected of being part of it. They had no real proof, but now I've been watched for even an inkling of suspicious activity concerning you ever since then." She paused, then looked to him with an edge of a smile. "I hardly suppose this counts," She added sarcastically, and Loki smirked a bit as well.

The flight continued in silence after that, though Loki could not stop noticing those darkened eyes flicking to him frequently. He met them calmly each time, only to watch her gaze dart away again in something almost describable as fright.

"Do I scare you?" His tone came out almost amused.

"You..." She searched for the words. "intimidate me, I guess." Good, intimidating was good. "You're a god, powerful and mighty... and actually pretty handsome..." Loki watched her stumble over words.

"You flatter me," He smirked. "And not just out of fear..?"

"You don't think I mean what I say?" She raised her eyebrows. "Yes, I fear you, but give me credit for joining you instead of fighting you, like the rest of the world. Don't tell me you couldn't use an ally," Her gaze had hardened, like she was accusing him. Loki could not guess where her nervousness had disappeared to. "And I mean a real ally. No mind control. No tricks."

"You are willing to prove your loyalty to me?" Loki asked. He had, in the back of his mind, been planning on using his scepter just to seal the deal, but maybe he wouldn't need it after all, depending on this young woman's determination...

"Yes, I am."

"Very well."

Loki's eyes retreated from hers to linger along the world around. The sky turned fiery in the sunset; reds and oranges and golds lighting up the horizon. By the time the sun retreated with an indigo hue in its wake, the girl had landed the quinjet.

No events took place upon exit; a couple nods were exchanged between her and some other pilots. Loki had his helmet and visor back down. Some looked at him questioningly, but no one stopped the two from leaving the hangar. Uneventful. How boring.

Loki followed his ally to a car, where she took the wheel and drove them in silence to a city. Loki was not a fan of mortal architecture. Some statues and buildings he could smile upon for their creativity, but elsewhere, all structure seemed to be limited only to simple, childish, blocklike shapes. And rather unkempt. The streets were dark and dusty, but pretty empty. It was almost unsettling.

The car parked, the woman and Loki exited into the nearly empty lot. She took the sketchbook, which never seemed to leave her side, and placed a hand over the SHIELD drawings. Two blue glows later, Loki's clothing was transformed into some sort of mortal clothing, and hers to a loose fitting black jacket and jeans.

"My apartment's just a block down," She said, tucking her sketchbook under her arm. Loki followed her silently. This part of the city seemed quiet, rather lifeless. Street lights were dim, and only a couple cars drove lazily by. No one here to get suspicious.

She pulled Loki into one of the taller, more impressive looking buildings. It was lit up inside, looking very clean and well kept. The woman at the desk nodded happily to the girl and Loki, though not saying anything. Nice as it was, it did not appear as though many other mortals took residence here, which was probably the best for the current situation.

They stepped inside an elevator, where she pressed the button marked 6. The ride up was silent. With a small ding! the elevator doors opened to a bright, cheerful looking hallway. She walked Loki down the gold carpeted floor, unlocking a door and holding it open for him.

Her apartment was bigger than what Loki had been expecting, but small for his liking. Palaces in Asgard made most of mortal living conditions look much too poor. Still, a queen sized bed against one wall, with a dark, velvet-like maroon rug beneath it. A light brown sofa sat in front of a large flatscreen tv at the other end of the room. In each far corner was a door, one to the bathroom, and the other to the kitchen, Loki assumed. Between them, on the far wall, were two large windows and a door to the balcony. The light pollution in the city prevented the sight of stars, however. Still, nice place. It would suffice.

"You can have the bed," She motioned to the dark red sheets. Loki nodded and walked over to sit down, pulling off the jacket draped carelessly over his shoulders. Lacking his usual armor, wearing only a simple green shirt and black pants, Loki felt quite a bit exposed. How mortals lived in such naked conditions, he could not guess.

"Do you need anything?" The young woman's quivering voice tapped gently through his thoughts. Did he need anything? He hadn't eaten, but being a god, food was not one of his necessities.

"Just some water," Loki shrugged. Something to drink was looking tempting. She nodded and walked lightly to the kitchen. A second later, she reappeared with a glass of ice water. As she walked over to Loki, he was struck by a thought.

"I never got your name," He said, taking the cold glass in his hands.

"Asha," She murmured softly. Loki nodded and took a sip of water. He rarely bothered with names, but here, considering she was providing service to him, it seemed only right to know. "I'm just gonna..." Asha's voice trailed off. "Get ready for bed. Yeah," she disappeared to the bathroom, and the sound of a shower being turned on came from behind the door.

Loki ran a hand through his hair, thinking. This was good. This was good. Ugh, no it wasn't. Asha saved him, and gave him an apartment to stay in for the night. Whether he liked it or not, Loki was in her debt. He hated being in others' debt. It wouldn't matter if she pleaded it didn't matter to her. It mattered to him. Oh well. Maybe he'd just spare her. Or recognize her as a loyal subjects when his ruling days came. That should be enough. Still, it nagged at him, the fact that he owed a mortal, a _mortal,_ of all beings. She willingly helped him. Scepter nowhere in sight, she still helped him. Wouldn't that be considered an act of insanity, knowing how much this world seemed to despise him?

Though, Loki wondered, his mind suddenly focused, was she really mortal? She possessed magic abilities. Not science-made, artificial powers those Avengers possessed, but real magic. Certainly not a god, but something greater, much greater than what she had let on. From another realm, perhaps? He'd have to ask her.

The shower was still running so Loki decided to just wait, surveying his surroundings with a little more interest. Around the room were several oil paintings. A snowy forest. An autumn lake. The city skyline at dusk. Loki didn't have to see the signatures to believe they were Asha's. They were so well made. Did she ever use them to modify the real world? Probably not. She seemed reluctant to harness the whole of her power. She wouldn't use it against others, she seemed much to shy of it. Not that that mattered. Loki would make her, and she wouldn't resist.

Now seemed like a good time to go to Asha, ask her about her power, her past. The sounds of her shower had disappeared, and now only the buzz of an electric toothbrush came from the bathroom.

Loki stood, walking to the door in a silence only he could muster. The door was ajar, letting a long tendril of light permeate into the room. Asha was in, dressed in a simple, spaghetti-strapped black tank top and gray sweatpants. She made no move to indicate she had seen Loki, only continuing to clean her teeth.

Mouth rinsed, Loki watched Asha stare, unmoving, into the mirror. Her expression was blank, empty. The god could not guess at what was happening within her head. She lifted her lower arm, and to Loki's surprise, clamped her teeth onto the smooth curve of flesh. He knit his brow, thoroughly puzzled. Mortals were so... strange. She wasn't drawing blood or anything, but didn't that kind of thing hurt?

Loki saw Asha's teeth clamp down harder, and a second later, she let go, losing the will to bear the pain any longer. On her arm were the crescent indentations of her teeth, which turned pinkish red on her skin. Asha bit herself again, dragging her teeth up her lower arm, from elbow to wrist, leaving long streaks of that same red.

It was watching her, Loki realized, well, he cared. So as her jaw went to flesh for a third time, he stepped into the bathroom, saying, "Asha,"

Asha started, jumping back. With eyes like dinner plates, mouth a tiny o of surprise, her face was the absolute epitome of shock.

"Asha," He repeated breathily. Loki took a step forward, interlacing his left hand with hers, and with the other, he ran a finger across her lower lip, and she looked to the ground. Asha was motionless, her breath slow, but Loki could feel her heart rate pulsing rapidly under her fingers. Nervous, surprised, scared. So scared.

"Do not," Loki said gently. "make me have to worry about you by doing that."

"I..." She looked away. "It's fine,"

"That did not look fine," Loki's gaze flicked to the pinkish marks on her arm. His hand drifted delicately down to the flesh, fingers lightly brushing the identations. "Tell me,"

"I'm just..." Asha sighed, slowly pulling her arm away. "emotionally numb, I guess?" Loki raised an eyebrow. That wasn't how he would describe Asha. Though she certainly was a lot quieter, much more restrained, than any mortals he had met on Midguard.

"It's..." Asha bit her lip. "Pain makes me feel something. It brings me back to the real world,"

"You often find yourself," Loki said, mildly intrigued. "away from the real world?"

"Life is not the fantasy I think it is," Asha countered firmly, almost harshly. "I need to remind myself of that."

"But not all life is pain," Loki reasoned. "Life can be just one long length of work and hardship, but it isn't all bad. Pain is frequent, but it does not remove the brighter points in life," Not like he knew was he was speaking of. All his happy, bright points in life, playing with Thor as a child, they were not real. Thor's friendship at the time was just another lie. Asha could be right. Life could often be confused for fantasy. He gave her hand a small squeeze. Loki never considered himself one for comfort, but she seemed to need it. "Asha, don't tell me you've lost those brighter points," She said nothing, her eyes cast away darkly to the floor. Loki lifted her chin up slightly with the side of his finger, so she looked at him. "May I help bring them back?"

Asha looked at him, and Loki saw that ghost of a smile, hope, flash across her face. An invitation for comfort.

Without hesitation, he leaned in a press his lips to hers. He let them rest there a second, then pulled back. He felt Asha's heart as a thrum of drumbeats, so fast with the shock, the nerves, the giddiness.

Loki paused for a second, then saw the look in her eyes. So he kissed her again, his lips locking for forcefully to hers and their teeth clashing together. Asha kissed him back with only a beat of hesitation.

She tasted, to Loki, of winter. Her lips felt coated with the frost of the sharpest mint. He was reminded of one of Asha's paintings back in the other room, the snowy forest. "Beautiful," Loki murmured softly. He felt Asha's lips smile in their kiss. His hand had traveled up her arm to her neck, where he methodically rubbed circles on the pale skin with his thumb. She never pulled away.

Finally, it was Loki who pulled away. Asha stared at him, as though she couldn't believe what had just happened. "Now," He said with a smile. "Do you really still feel emotionally numb?" She smiled back.

"No," Asha sighed happily. "Thank you, Loki,"

Loki took her hand and led her out of the bathroom, up to her bed. Asha clicked out the lights, and Loki sat down on the bed. He held out his arm, offering that she slept with him.

"Oh," He couldn't see her face, but from her tone of voice, Asha was a little taken aback. Too taken aback. Why did- Oh. She probably thought he was offering that she sleep with him in _that_ way. Silly girl. "I was just going to use the couch..." Loki shook his head.

"Come along, Asha," He smiled. "I will not deny you the comforts of a bed just because you do not usually have guests," She paused, then walked over and lay down next to him on the bed. For a moment or two, there was silence.

"I was... Surprised," Asha said. "I mean, me, of all people. Do you usually mix with mortals?" Loki smirked, thinking of the kiss. It really was worth more to her than to him.

"I guess it depends." He said, a little vaguely. "After all, I owed you the favor. You've done me good service, so I needed some way to repay the kindness. However, you don't completely strike me as mortal..." which returned him to his previous question.

She turned to look at Loki. "I don't think I'm a god, if that's what you mean."

Loki shook his head. "But you are of magic ability. That's not exactly common."

Asha shrugged. She actually _shrugged_. It seemed more than extreme modesty; she seemed not to believe it herself. "I have no idea. I must have always had this ability, but I really discovered when I was sixteen or something. That's when I got into drawing realistic. I'd have someone model for me, or possibly use a landscape, and weird things would happen. Small things, going mostly unnoticed. I noticed, though. So I experimented. After a couple pages, I got a grip on what was happening. And now, I'm just trying to find the full extent of what I can do with a picture." Loki listened carefully, nodding every now and then. So she still was sure of her power's "full extent". Acceptable.

"Have you ever tried to use this against others?" He asked. Asha could become very important to him, a weapon, if she was willing to help. Though she did seem a little shy to turn her power into a something dangerous.

"I..." She paused. "I'm remembering mainly one time, but I've probably tried it against people quite a few times, I guess. Actions, though. You can't really control minds. Just physical stuff. I... I can't kill, by the way. I can injure, but not kill. Just, for some reason, it won't allow me to alter someone's physical state by that much," Loki nodded. Understandable. Another question floated around in his head. He was only mildly interested in her answer, but more of her history could be easily revealed.

"Have you had a relationship with anyone else?" Her back was to him, so Loki couldn't see Asha's face, but he could tell she had gone red; heat was pulsing from the back of her neck. The tips of were ears also flushed a bit. Embarrassed girl. So much like a child, on the inside.

"Yeah. Specifically the most recent one," She said, her voice quiet, then added, "Though it wasn't a very good relationship," The last sentence had a growled edge.

"Did you not love him?" Loki placed his cold hand over her heated neck, listening to her past with attentive interest.

"I loved him plenty," Asha said, a little defensively. "Heartless bastard used that to his advantage,"

"I see,"

"Effing hate him." So it was anger. Anger and hate and some pain; that was what gave her confidence, strength.

"Did he love you?"

"He might have cared, but honestly, I'd hate him more if he did," Asha let out an angry breath. "I bet I was just something like a toy to him." Loki said nothing. He was listening, but his vivid eyes gazed into the blue-black sky. So very few stars. Just a black, block-like horizon. Asha's angry breathing was slowing to a relaxed, even pace. Nearly asleep. Loki stroked the back of a finger soothingly against her neck. He cared, yes. He cared for Asha. But love? Probably not. Even care seemed like a bit of a stretch. Loki was just repaying the debt. Helping her out a bit, emotionally. That was all. Her worship was much appreciated, though. He would not forget that.

Asha slept quietly next to him while Loki made no effort to do the same. He was just thinking, living within his head. "You know," A familiar voice knocked Loki back to reality. He knew that voice, arrogant and downright annoying. "I believe the last time we met, you were the one in armor, not me," Oh no... Not him...

**Well, we can already tell Asha's not right in the head, considering she works for SHIELD but is freaking making out with Loki. Hey, makes for an interesting character. **

**She is _so_ going to lose her job...**


	3. It's Never a Party without Tony Stark

**Ah, it's never a party without Tony Stark...**

Tony Stark. That stupid, unshaven face looking at him through the window. In his metal, robotic armor, no doubt. How did-?

Loki got out of the bed and strode to the window. He was well aware of the fact that he lacked armor, and tried not to let that bother him. The god's hands itched for something to throw, to stab him with, to kill this arrogant metal clad mortal.

"And why are you here?" Loki asked calmly. Tony raised an eyebrow.

"I could ask you the same thing, Loki. Last time I checked, you were being held prisoner. Again," True, but did that really have to be pointed out?

"Which just goes to show," Loki spread his arms out beside him with a smile. "How bad security is. But again, I ask you. Why. Are. You. Here?"

Tony puffed out a breath of air. "Someone's impatient. Anyway, don't flatter yourself. I'm not here for you. I came," He pointed a metal gloved finger. "To check on her. I got a notice an old girlfriend was flying home, so I thought I might as well look in on her. Seems you got there first, though."

Asha. Asha, Stark's old girlf-?

Oh. Loki's eyes lingered over the glowing reactor on the iron suit's chest plate. He remembered how his scepter couldn't make a dent on Tony's loyalties. "Heartless bastard," Loki quoted Asha musingly. "Couldn't live up to a better description."

"That's what she remembers me as? Shit," Tony said. "Okay, that's why I'm here. To fix that description," Loki couldn't help but smirk.

"Yes, good luck with that," He said. "Her loyalties are elsewhere,"

"Oh, so you're her new sex god then?" Tony raised an eyebrow. Loki shrugged. God yes, but no, they did not have sex. Naturally, Stark was the type of guy who made assumptions. "Already went down that little whore's road, Loki. Does she idolize you? Worship you?" Yes and yes.

Loki leaned in. "Did she draw you?" Stark looked a little confused. "She draws?" Loki smirked, almost in disbelief. Tony Stark was unaware of her unfathomable power. No wonder Asha resented him so much. He probably didn't even know her last name. On the other hand, neither did Loki. "Like a professional,"

Tony motioned the door. "May I come in?" Loki opened the door. Tony sauntered in, his dark eyes flitting around the room. "I still think Stark Tower's better," he muttered. "Just saying,"

Loki had nothing to say to this. It was a bit of an unfair comparison, considering Stark actually made Stark Tower himself, tailored to his tastes, while Asha had to get a pre-made apartment room.

Stark was looking around, his mouth opened to say something else, when Loki saw a pillow ricochet off the side of his head. "What the-?" He turned as another hit him in the face. Asha was awake, sitting in her bed, angry, armed to the teeth with pillowesque projectiles.

"What. The. Hell." She snarled at him, every word accentuated with a thrown pillow. "Are. You. Doing. Here?" she seemed so furious, Loki almost thought it was comical. Maybe too mad. Too mad to be realistic for the situation.

"Easy sweetheart," Stark held up an arm as the pillows bounced harmlessly off his metal suit.

"Aaargh!" Asha, clearly even more mad about being called sweetheart, jumped up and off the bed. "Loki! Where's my sketchbook?" Her tone was so commanding, so furious, Loki took a step back and pointed a little hesitantly at the bedside table. Whatever happened between Asha and Stark, it seemed to be much more than what she was letting on. Asha snatched her book and impatiently flipped through the pages.

"Oh, so you do draw," Stark noted.

"Oh, so I do!" She snapped. Loki watched her seething in amusement. One hand on her sketchbook, one poised in the air. "Glad you noticed!"

Sketchbook glowing...

"That's not natural..." Stark knit his brow. A knife, identical to the one she freed Loki with, the one that could hack through metal_,_ appeared in her free hand.

"And that's a knife..." His helmet slid down over his face as the blade went flying. An arm flew up in self-defense, and it embedded itself in the metal. "The fuck-?" Tony pulled out the knife, staring at the neat little dent it made in his armor. "How-?" Another flew by, nearly missing his head. And another. And another.

Asha's face was contorted in anger, the hand on her sketchbook emitting bright white light as her ammunition kept reappearing in her other hand.

"Asha! Damnit, why're you still angry?" Stark was making his way slowly towards Asha, doing his best to avoid direct hits. Loki was watching the whole scene in amusement, enjoying the entertainment. Why did mortals start battles over such insignificant events?

"Let's put it this way," Asha said, as Stark got close enough to grab her wrists and put a stop in the onslaught of magic knives. "You nearly killed me! I'm just returning the favor!" She attempted to kick Stark, but swore under her breath about metal armor.

Alright, Loki thought. So now, it is apparent there was not just a bad relationship, but some near death experiences concerning Stark. Well, that can help explain the anger.

"You've got a lot of explaining to do," The metal clad man said calmly, holding Asha's wrists without difficulty. "Mainly concerning Loki over there," Loki scooped up one of the fallen knives and pocketed it for later use. "And the glowing. What the hell was with the glowing and magic knives?" His helmet receded back, revealing to Loki a most perfect target. The god threw one of the knives. It was well aimed, but instead of the blade embedding itself in Tony's head, the handle hit him. It didn't knock him out as intended, but hit him hard enough to loosen his grip on Asha. She pulled her arms free, and instead of jumping away, she drew an arm back and delivered a punch straight to the face.

"Shit," Stark muttered, almost incoherently, as he spat out a splash of blood. Asha was cradling her hand painfully in her arm. Stark turned to face Loki, advancing slowly on him. "You did this, didn't you? You did your weird mind control stunt and now she's your mindlessly loyal puppy!"

"Just a kiss," Loki smirked, then punched him. His hand collided painfully with Stark's cheekbone, knocking him out. The iron soldier crashed to the ground.

"Well," Loki sighed, turning back to Asha, who had recovered her sketchbook. "You two have quite a history,"

"Yeah..." Asha smiled. She flipped open her book and began drawing Stark, lying on the ground. She was drawing him, unconscious. "Really though, I'm just an expert at holding grudges,"

"Quite,"

"So, right before I dumped him," She trilled, not looking up from the drawing. "he thought it might be a funny, _harmless_," That word had a growled edge. "little, joke, if he were to, you know, _accidentally_ _push_ me off the top of Stark Tower. And just to let you know," She held up a hand. "I am deathly afraid of heights,"

"What about on the quinjet?" Loki asked, genuinely curious.

"Okay, to clarify:" Asha smiled. "Heights when I have nothing beneath me."

"Ah,"

"No, nevermind, not really heights." Asha suddenly countered herself. "Falling. I freak out when I get that pit feeling in my stomach. Alright falling, that's it. Anyway, Tony flew down in his Iron Man suit last-second and grabbed me, ten feet from the ground or something. I was scared out of my mind," Her voice was small. "I mean, I actually thought I was going to die. And Tony," Asha's eyes narrowed at the drawing. "Tony just laughed. He said I was being stupid. He said I was being over-dramatic. He said I was overreacting. He did NOT, however," Loki saw the grip on her pencil tighten. "say he was sorry. And honestly, I doubt he ever will,"

"You hate him because he didn't apologize for something?" Loki asked, amused. Maybe Asha _was_ overreacting a bit.

"He nearly killed me," She defended. "And the fact that he didn't apologize for scaring me shitless was because he didn't care." Silence followed. Loki had nothing to say. Stark was, well, an interesting person. Loki didn't doubt for a second Tony would pull a stunt like that to laugh at another's expense.

His eyes lingered over Asha's new drawing. It wasn't finished, but he could tell it... wasn't all that good. The lines were all very slightly crooked and misshapen. Loki was no expert in Asha's ability, but it didn't seem like her mind's eye would recognize the drawing. Then, he saw why. Her fingers were slightly swollen, and every time she dragged the graphite across the page, her hand quivered and she winced.

"Your hand hurts," Loki noted. Asha paused in the drawing. She nodded, once, very slightly.

"I've never really punched someone before," She sighed, setting the pencil down. "At least, not that hard,"

"Well, no point in drawing if you're in pain," Loki said. He was a little frustrated by this, but these drawbacks came around every now and then. Better to just wait for them to pass.

"Yeah," Asha sighed, standing up. "So what do we do about Tony?"

"We leave him," Loki said. "And then, when he wakes, we let him return to Fury so he can spread the word,"

"The word?"

"Loki has escaped," Loki said. "And he has with him a powerful new ally," He added with a smirk. Asha returned the smile. Powerful new ally indeed.


	4. Well, we've been caught again

"How's your hand?" Loki asked. Asha flexed her fingers. A hissed breath slid through her lips, as if it was still a bit painful. Even so, she took the pencil to paper and scribbled a bit. Asha tested it out her drawing skills gently, sketching a small, shiny, cabochon stone on the back of another picture. Simple. A second later, she held it in her hand.  
"Working," Asha smiled. Without instruction, she resumed her previous drawing of Stark. He was still lying motionless on the rug.  
"I'll let you know," Asha warned, concentrating on the page. "This takes a very long time. I can't rush these drawings."  
"So it's not always the most convenient of magic abilities?" Loki asked, seeing what she was trying to get across. Even with such an ability, there were drawbacks. Time being one of them.  
"Exactly," She nodded. "But, these drawing can be reused. So if I finish a drawing of Tony, unconscious, I can use it any time we feel it would be better if he wasn't talking."  
"Sounds delightful," Loki smiled. "I must say, I do like the idea of a quiet Tony Stark," Asha chuckled softly.

Asha wasn't kidding. It did take a while to complete the drawing. Her hand was probably contributing. Patience could only run so thin... While she worked, Loki kept an eye on Tony. He had better not wake up, not before Asha was done. Or else he would have to punch him again, and Loki did not like the feel of skin on skin. Damn, he craved his scepter.  
"Nearly done," Asha reported. Loki looked over. Stark was on paper, lying down, his helmet up to reveal closed eyes, an unconscious face.  
Fine lines, realistic metallic shading, and strong detail. "If I repeat myself, forgive me for doing so, but I believe this must be said again. You're an exquisite artist," Loki complimented. And he meant it.  
Asha blushed with the praise. Bashful girl. Modest. "A thousand thank yous, Loki." He smiled, glad to see her happy.  
There was silence in the room as Loki watched Asha begin going over her lines, re-defining them, overall making the picture jump a little more off the page. Personally, he thought it was fine, but clearly Asha's magic ability came packaged with perfectionism. Every detail had to be, apparently, painfully exact.  
The quiet atmosphere that had settled in the room shattered as Stark, the one lying on the ground, coughed, and a small moan escaped his lips.  
"Shit," Asha hissed. She put her hand on the sketchbook, eyes flashing frantically from the nearly-finished drawing to Tony, who was slowly sitting up. A second passed, and nothing glowed. Asha swore under her breath, looking from her drawing to Tony. She wasn't done with the drawing.  
They were in trouble. Loki was without weapons of any kind. Almost all the magic knives seemed to have vanished. Why did that metal warrior have to wake now?  
"Loki," Asha hissed. Loki's eyes flicked towards her, and she slid up a hand to point to a small metal hair clip. "There's a sharpened edge in it, a needle. Without paper or pencil, charcoal or ink, blood," She shuddered. "Blood is always an alternative. And it works," Tony still hadn't fully regained consciousness. They had seconds, but seconds wasn't enough time.  
"Crafty," Loki nodded. "You intend on being caught?" Intention or not, it was going to happen if they didn't leave. Or even if they did, it wouldn't be enough.  
"You leave," Asha said. "I'm certainly not going to get out of this. You can still go,"  
"I'm still going to need you," Loki told her. "I still need my scepter. I am going to go where you go. If that means going back to SHIELD, I shall be willing to do so."  
Asha stared at him, then nodded, a bit of a smile on her lips.  
"Cap, Thor, Fury," Tony said in a pained voice, clearly comming them. "Loki is being a bitch. Give me a hand,"  
He turned his hand around, and before Loki could duck out of the way, he was pummeled in the chest by a brilliant ball of energy, throwing him backwards. He hit the wall with a starburst of pain, leaving a large indentation in the plaster. Stunned but still conscious, he heard Asha yell his name.  
Another blast from Tony's arm cannon sent him through the wall, tumbling painfully into the hallway. He slowly tried to stand, but his knees buckled. The world before him swam, blurred and unfocused. Thank the All-Father he was a god, or he would have been stone dead by now.  
For a third time, Tony blasted at him, sending him into the opposite wall, and Loki's vision flickered dangerously. He could no longer move, everything ached and stung.  
"Tony, you ASSHOLE!" He heard Asha yell. Followed by a little more swearing. Loki recognized that shouldn't have stayed. He should have forced Asha to fly him straight to his staff, not wait around in her apartment. In the name of Odin, what had he been thinking? Why did he bother with the detour?  
Loki could not feel the strength returning to his limbs, which bothered him greatly. He was weak, exposed, in no position to fight. He didn't know how much time passed before Tony was joined by the other Avengers. All of them but Thor. Where was the god of thunder? Back on Asgard, maybe? Too ashamed of him?  
"Stark, when you said Loki was being a bitch, you didn't tell us he was already knocked out." That must have been Barton, the archer. Clearly, they assumed Loki was up and fighting, not motionless on the ground. They had expected a fight. Well, Loki thought. Sorry to disappoint you.  
"How the hell," And that was the Russian woman, Natasha Romanoff. "Did _Asha Edona_ of all people, get him out of a _level twelve_ security?" Asha Edona made no response to this. Stark, however, did.  
"She's got powers," He said. "Her sketchbook, where's her sketchbook?" Loki held back a smile. The power wasn't in the book. It was hers. Stark only got a glimpse of what she could do. In reality, Asha could use whatever to make a drawing come to life. The book was _not_ the key to her power. But clearly, they thought it was. Good.  
He heard Stark flip to the page with the knife, pointing it out and showing the real life version, which could hack through metal, as Loki was handcuffed and led down several flights of stairs. People gawked in the hallways. Downstairs, a SHIELD agent was conversing with the frantic looking woman at the front desk. And then, once more, he was boarded on a quinjet.  
Thor still wasn't there. Loki was glad of that; he didn't want to see that same tired, disappointed face. It made him sick. It turns out most Avengers only came to see how he had once again gotten out of SHIELD control.  
Asha was actually conscious, and Loki was reassured to see the metal pin still resting under their layers of dark brown hair. They did not look at each other on the plane. The Avengers, they were fools. They were discussing the power of the sketchbook, not Asha. They were even more convinced after hearing Asha shout pleas of defiance when they discussed destroying it.  
"I've had that book for years," She said. "You can_not_ destroy it."  
"Ms. Edona, you really aren't in any position to say that." Rogers. Steve Rogers. Or, to the rest of the Earth, Captain America.  
"We won't destroy it," Loki was surprised to hear Stark say this. He never struck Loki as the reassuring type. "But, we can use it as evidence against you."  
"Evidence against me?" Asha asked, her voice harsh. "I aided in Loki's escape. He never would have left if it wasn't for me. _I'm even admitting it_. What more evidence do you need?"  
"I don't think you understand what we're telling you," Romanoff stated seriously. "This isn't about Loki anymore. As you know, SHIELD has a potential threat list. Of course you do, you worked on monitoring them. If what Tony said was true and what you draw on this book you can make happen in real life, let's just say you're putting yourself rather high on that list..."

**Director Fury, Asha's worked at SHIELD, under your eyes (well, eye), for years. I can't believe you never noticed she was magical...**


	5. Chapter V I just read V for Vendetta

As they flew, Asha was silent, but her stare was hard and angry; much different from the scared, timid mouse of a woman Loki remembered. He greatly preferred the newfound fire in this Asha Edona.  
"Edona," Barton held up the sketchbook, breaking the tension. "If I were draw something in this book, would it appear in front of me?"  
Asha said nothing, though her eyes flickered nervously to Loki. She needed his guidance. She needed someone to lead her, because she believed she was lost without him. That was the unspoken truth of humanity. Loki did not return her silent plea for help. She could figure this out. The sketchbook. The sketchbook. Make them believe in the sketchbook. Because if they believe it's the book, Edona will easier escape their worries. They think that without it, she would be powerless.  
"Edona?"  
"No, it wouldn't work," Asha said, almost casually, eyes flicking up to Barton. "Unless you're a really realistic artist. Crazily realistic, or else it just stays as a picture on the page."  
There we go, Loki thought, nodding his head a fraction of a slight to show his approval. That's good.  
"And you are a really realistic artist?"  
"That's what I would guess," She shook a lock of hair out of her face, her hands bracing against the cuffs behind her back. Natural habit, Loki assumed, would make her reach up and push her hair away with her hands as she always did, but now her hands were behind her. He wondered how he noticed something like that.  
"Yep," Romanoff had taken the book and was flipping through the pages, eyes closely examining each one. "She is," Coming from her tongue, it did not sound much like a compliment.  
"How the hell," Tony Stark cut in. "does this kind of thing even WORK?" Silent glances were exchanged around the jet, all ending on either Asha or Loki. They clearly could not accept the idea of magic, instead of mortal, clear cut science. Their minds were so small it was almost amusing.  
"I don't know." Asha said simply. "I didn't make the thing. I don't even remember where or when I got it." A note of silence followed her words. She wasn't even lying, Loki could tell. Which was helpful.  
"Could someone," Rogers asked, clearly not comfortable with the quiet atmosphere, looking over Natasha's shoulder. "with the same level of artistic ability be able to use the sketchbook like you do?" Loki silently sucked in a breath. Don't ruin this, Asha.  
"I would assume so," She said, her voice innocent edged with natural curiosity. Perfect. "Though no one's really ever tried to use it in the way I do, or really use it whatsoever. I don't share this book with anyone," Loki released the breath, his shoulders relaxing in relief. Good girl.  
Conversation pretty much ended right there. Clint Barton scribbled down a note. Stark called a frantic Pepper Potts. A minute later, the air shattered when Natasha flipped to a certain page.  
"So," Natasha said, her eyes locked on the sketchbook and her lips curved in an amused smile. "How long have you... worshipped Loki?"  
Several people in the plane snickered, looking over Natasha's shoulder, as Asha went red. Loki didn't know what she had drawn, but he knew enough of mortal culture to have an idea.  
"Turn the page, please," Asha mumbled. Her head was bowed low, face flaming red. Loki could see her desire to hide behind her hands as they jangled the cuffs. "Please... This is why I don't share my sketchbook. It's private,"  
"Hell yeah it is," Tony snorted. His eyes flicked to Asha, and Loki saw his expression soften a slight. He still cared. "Kay, this is cruel. Close the book, 'Tasha," Natasha obliged, and the Avengers paused in their gravitating towards whatever was drawn on the page. What had she drawn? Loki wondered, trying hard not to let his curiosity show. Tony seemed to be waiting for him to inquire about it, considering how he was looking at the god.  
Silence returned like fog to the plane. After another minute or so, the quinjet landed. And once again, Loki was landed in SHIELD control.  
"Put Loki in the level twelve security and Edona in a level three," Barton ordered SHIELD agents. "Natasha, take the book to Fury,"

Loki almost had a spring in his step as SHIELD agents led him back to the containment he'd been held in at the beginning of this fanfic. Everything seemed flipped. Now he had a plan, knowing Asha could free him. Now, SHIELD was positive Loki wouldn't escape, thinking Asha was powerless without her book. He had an undoubtedly loyal ally, whose loyalty would be tested, as the god was solely depending on it. If Asha thought fast, acted quickly and with care, they could manage the escape. Loki could get his scepter. Asha could draw him a palace, an island, a starting point for his kingdom. A place the Avengers would be unable to penetrate. And his plans could follow through.  
"Same cell?" Loki asked as he was pushed onto the floating platform with darkness beneath him. "Nothing new? There's no fun in that," The SHIELD agents did not respond. He wasn't expecting them to.  
And here Loki was again, patiently waiting on the platform. Only now, he knew what he was waiting for. Asha, he could tell, would know when to strike. Not right away, when it was expected. But not after Fury discovered her what she could do with her power. Strike when least expected Asha, as it may be our greatest chance of escape.

As he waited, Loki couldn't help but was wonder what happened beyond his sight. What were they discovering about Asha? About her sketchbook? And what about Thor? Did he come back to sigh and shake his head at Loki as if he were Odin? Or did he not even bother returning at all?

The iron door opened, maybe days, maybe hours after Loki's capture. Time had been slipping meaninglessly by; it was hard to tell... The woman who stepped in wasn't Asha; it was Romanoff. She didn't appear to be in any sort of hurry.  
"Loki," The Russian said flatly. She hit a couple buttons on the control panel near the door. "I wanted to ask you about Ms. Edona,"  
"How is she?" Loki cut in quickly, accidently letting his voice slip through his lips as worried, almost anxious. Damn, he was supposed to sound calm. A smile lilted on Romanoff's mouth.  
"If I remember correctly," Natasha said. "We'd be switching places from five years ago if I asked, 'Is this love?'"  
"Your memory does not fail you," Loki smirked. She was right, he did ask her the same about Clint. "Nay, I am in her debt and don't want her in bad shape,"  
"You?" Natasha raised her eyebrows. "In _her_ debt? The way she acts, it's the other way around. Which brings me back to what I wanted to ask you: What sort of mind control did you use on her?" Loki smiled. He loved explaining this, seeing the reactions.  
"None," He hissed with a sly smile. "She freed me and fought for me on her own mind."  
"Well that explains some stuff," Natasha sighed. "Barton tried knocking her out, like I did with him in our last battle, to see if you had done some mind control crap. But nope, she still worships you. Which, by the way," She added. "would deem one certifiable insane on Earth. Counseling her doesn't make a dent. Honestly, she isn't right in the head."  
"Seems fine to me," Loki said casually. Natasha eyed him with an icy stare. They had discovered something. Something Loki did not know. But, with luck, Loki would find out.  
"Do you even know what she is?" The Widow asked, her voice edged with a hiss.  
"I assumed she was an extremely artistic and loyal mortal woman with a magic sketchbook," Loki stared back at Natasha, matching her intensity. "That's all I could take away from meeting her."  
"Asha Edona doesn't eat or drink," She said, louder, and Loki raised an eyebrow. "Yet she remains with a perfectly healthy BMI. That's not humanly possible," He was right. Asha was not mortal. She was something greater.

**(Look people, I'll tell you right now: Asha is NOT a vampire. She's pale because she doesnt leave her house or SHIELD very much, she bites herself because shes weirdly emo or just wanted Loki to care about her (more likely the latter), and when Loki kissed her, she tasted like winter because of a nice mortal thing we like to call toothpaste. She's NOT a vampire. As for not eating... You'll have to wait and see. It may or may not have something to do with her origins…)**

**I don't think I've asked this in previous chapters, so I'll ask now: Review! Yay! Now you have something to review about. What do you think Asha is? Or review about something totally random. I couldn't care less. Heck, I'm alone and I need someone to talk to. Here's another question: Are you part of Loki's army? Is my Loki in this OOC (Out of Character)? Please, I NEED to know. Because I just _love_ Loki's character. It would mean a lot to me if you spotted any flaws :)**


	6. Prepare Yourself

"Well," Loki huffed out a breath of air. "That's intriguing,"  
"Fury thinks so too," Natasha replied casually, then fixed Loki with a stare. "He wants to get DNA samples for Banner to study. Who, by the way, is halfway across the world right now," Naturally, with mortals, it all came down to science.  
"You need not worry about my attempts to unleash that monster." Loki said with a smile. "I don't take SHIELD as a group to fall for the same trick twice," He paused, remembering something else. "Didn't Asha used to work in SHIELD?"  
"Yes, she did," Natasha said flatly. "No one knew her all that well. She helped monitor superhuman, supernatural people and abilities, though," Loki considered this. She must have been looking for him. Asha was looking for Loki by working against him. Not a bad plan.  
"That's what we worry about, though," Natasha admitted. "Her containment could falter because of her SHIELD knowledge. Obviously, we don't want that,"  
"And what of Asha's sketchbook?" Loki tried. What was happening beyond his own containment?  
"Not working," Natasha sighed. "We hired several artists to test it out. Once they have the picture on the page, nothing happens. Edona keeps talking about 'activating' the drawing, but no one knows exactly how to do that." That must have been the blue glowing, Loki supposed. All her drawings stayed drawings until activation.  
"And what of Asha?" He asked. "What do you do with her now?" Natasha sighed.  
"We don't really know. So far, we've detected energy on Edona's book, but traces. It's not coming from the book, but it doesn't come from her either," Loki's eyebrows raised. He expected great amounts of magic energy to be emanating from Asha. Apparently not. So where _did_ it come from?  
"What did you do to her?" Natasha asked, rather suddenly. Her green eyes pierced his. She so desperately wanted to know this... "The way she talks about you, the way she lights when she hears your name, it's not natural."  
"I think we've already gone over the idea that Asha is not a natural being," Loki noted. He was glad to hear what he had heard. More than just worship. He was not just a leader, a king to her. Asha was, no doubt, in love with him. Perfect. How easily he could use this to his adv-  
No. No. No, he couldn't. Because Loki cared for Asha and he remembered what she had told him about her last relationship.  
'I loved him plenty. Heartless bastard used that to his advantage,' He could not repeat her past. Loki did not want to do that to her.  
"What's that?" Loki looked up. Natasha wasn't talking to him. She had her hand up to her ear. Mortal communication... "Yeah, be right there," She darted a glance at Loki. "Gotta go,"  
"A pleasure talking with you again," The god smiled. Natasha said nothing, punching in a code and exiting swiftly through the iron doors. They slid closed after her, and Loki was once again alone.  
Was that Asha? Was Asha the reason Natasha suddenly had to leave? What was she doing? Was this the escape plan?  
A minute passed, and questions still lingered in Loki's mind. This could be it. Something caught his eye, and the god looked at his hand. What do you know, it was glowing. It's aura was the same blue that appeared when Asha activated a drawing. He stared at his palm, as letters, words appeared in scrawled handwriting upon the skin. The font was deep red, like blood. No doubt, this was Asha's doing.  
P... R... E... One by one, each letter drew itself in. Loki could imagine Asha activating a picture of his hand, writing this onto the palm while it glowed. He pictured a bloodied needle clasped between her fingers like a quill, with drops of crimson pooling on the stainless white floors.  
"Is this how desperate you are to prove your loyalty?" Loki murmured, looking at the blood letters on his palm. Something of a smile crept up around his lips. "I'm proud of you, Asha,"

PREPARE YOURSELF

Asha... Loki stared at his hand, clenching and unclenching it. This was it.  
Prepare yourself...  
The god stood, hands clasped together behind his back. What he was to prepare for, he was unsure. Asha would have limited weapons. Without her sketchbook-already stocked with useful drawings to activate-how would his magical little ally get to him?  
Loki cleared his head. He need not worry about the how. He need only follow Asha's instructions scrawled across his skin and be prepared for whatever was coming. So much could go wrong, though. Asha against SHIELD...  
Loki paused in his thoughts. A shift, something like a shift, took place in the air. Nothing visibly changed, and Loki could not feel a variant in the air around him, but something definitely shifted. Loki could not identify what had just occurred, until his unsatisfactory mortal clothing grew heavy on his shoulders. He smiled, raising his arms and watching his clothing evolve from flimsy cloth to the familiar folds and layers of leather armor.  
Wonderful, Loki smiled to himself. He rolled back his shoulders, feeling the heavy cloak sweep the area around his ankles. This was a feeling that he almost missed.  
"Asha..." He whispered with a wisp of a smile. She'd regained her sketchbook; that's how she got his armor back. She'd regained her sketchbook and was coming to him.  
How she was able to accomplish all this, Loki was unsure, but that did not matter to him. Some people might have been surprised at the faith he placed on this seemingly incapable, scared, rather short mortal, but he didn't place it on her exactly. Loki was sure to put his faith in Asha's fear, her fear of her failure. She would accomplish anything for him for the fear of his disappointment, punishment, in the event of a failure. That was what Loki had faith in.  
"Set up a guard around the door!" A voice worked its way through the iron door to Loki's ears. Natasha Romanoff. "Quickly!" She sounded firm, though not panicked. In control. On top of things. No surprise. That was who Romanoff was, after all.  
The door slid open, and Natasha was standing, watching him fiercely, with several armed SHIELD agents behind her, guns pointed down the hall. The Black Widow had a gun in each hand, and it was easy to see the amount of self-control needed to keep the barrels pointed at the ground, as opposed to Loki's head.  
"Loki," She stated, eyes narrowed. "I compliment you. You've found yourself one of the most dangerous girlfriends in the whole of history," Girlfriend? Loki thought. Is that what the mortals believed? Mortals, who jumped to conclusions and made mindless assumptions quick as heartbeat. Who guessed at worthless queries like children always wanting to be right or to make fun. Ugh, he hated these creatures.  
"You are all so petty," Loki smirked at Natasha's seriousness. "Where are the rest of the Avengers? Isn't this the sort of scenario that would call upon 'Earth's Mightiest Heroes'?"  
"'Tasha!" Loki, even from his distance, could hear the voice of Clint Barton leaping from a walkie-talkie on "Tasha's" waist. "Tasha, do you have Loki?"  
"I've set up a guard, yes," She answered, sneaking a look at the god of mischief. "And he's being lovely and polite as always. How about you? I need an update on Edona,"  
"She's on your level, according to the building layout," Clint replied. "Carmen says she just exited the second weapons storage, and, well, she has now sort of barricaded herself in that abandoned laboratory right next to it."  
"And what about the squad that was supposed to counter her?" Natasha demanded.  
"Taken out," Loki raised an eyebrow at the archer's response. "She's got her brother Austin Edona accompanying her. High-ranking field agent. He made short work of the first squad," Ah. Family loyalty. A luxury Loki could not afford. Not that that mattered.  
"Treacherous bastard, I helped train him," Natasha mumbled. "And where are you?"  
"Well, if you put it one way... Right above them,"  
Loki drew in a sharp breath. It hissed a little loudly between his teeth and the Widow glanced at him. Asha, in danger. And she did not even know. Could she not sense the archer, poised above her, ready to bring her life to end?  
"You and your secret passages," Natasha smiled. "Have a clear shot?"  
"Not... really," Clint said slowly. It sounded like he was trying to shift his angle. "Damn, she's in a corner. Besides, Fury doesn't really want to kill her. Too valuable a subject or something."  
A subject... Loki gave a mental growl. Asha was not fit for the title 'subject'. She had more power than any being he'd ever met. Worthy of her ability to control the world or not, Asha had the powers of a goddess. And, considering what Loki knew of her, that was quite a possibility. She could, just maybe, be of Asgard.  
"I might be able to hit her book..." Barton's walkie-talkie-blurred voice interrupted Loki's thoughts. He needed to explore these possibilities at a later time.  
"Don't try it." Romanoff warned. "Don't give away your position. Just wait until you get a clear shot,"  
"Hawkeye, over and out," A burst of static, then the air fell quiet.  
Loki watched Natasha hold on to the silent walkie talkie for a long, emotionally charged moment. Her eyebrows were knit together in worry. Loki understood, and grinned deviously.  
"The Widow and the Hawk," Loki said silkily. Natasha looked up. "The other Avengers are not here? You are the only ones?"  
"We can handle the Edona's," She said confidently. "by ourselves."  
"Of course you can," Loki hissed, his smile wider. Natasha frowned, but said no more on the topic. Her discomfort was so clear. Loki thrived on it, her worry, her fear of him creeping under her skin.  
"What is," She tilted her head in curiosity towards the god. "your relationship with Asha?" Loki let loose a small, but rather exasperated, sigh.  
"I have no want nor need," He looked skyward in frustration. "for romance, for flings, at the current time. Why must I explain this to everyone?" Love, right now, was a distraction. By the Allfather, he had goals to complete, Midguard to rule.  
"That's a shame." Natasha said plainly. "That's _pathetically_ predictable, but still a shame."  
"I have better things to do," Loki almost snapped at her. Predictable was not one of the attributes he liked to possess. Quickly, he calmed himself. "Like giving Midguard the king it needs,"  
"Doesn't every king," She responded without hesitation. "need a queen?"  
Loki was silent. Natasha proposed a valid point. A very valid point. He could use a queen, true. But it all depended on how reliable Asha turned out.  
"I'll tell you honestly that Asha's freakishly obsessed with you. She's hopelessly in love," Natasha added. Loki stared at her, rather blankly. Her following words were slower, as if the spy was trying to explain something complicated to a child. "so even if you don't love her back, it would do you well to be good to her. She works her ass off for you. She's a good person and, undoubtedly, your best chance."  
"Who are you," Loki inquired in a low voice, his tone had turned stony again. "to counsel me of matters I place no interest in? Why waste your mortal breath?" Why would she tell him this?  
"It's for your own benefit-"  
"And why," Loki's voice had anger rising in it, but he wasn't sure why. "would you _ever_ be interested in my benefits? _Me_, _Loki_, of all beings?" His benefit? _Natasha?_  
"I'm not." Natasha claimed, honestly. She paused, as I'd not sure whether to continue speaking. Loki eyed her hesitation, unblinking, until the Widow opened her mouth to talk again. "Your brother is."

And that's how you know the Avengers were starting to get desperate, Loki decided. When Thor tried his hand at being Matchmaker. By the Allfather, how could he love Asha now, knowing that doing so would give Thor the satisfaction?  
"Natasha!" It was Clint. His voice was hissing, sharp and rushed.  
"Damnit, Clint," Natasha raised the walkie talkie. "What happened?"  
"Asha's activating a drawing," The archer hissed. "It's his scepter. It's Loki's scepter. Get-" But his words were cut off by a burst of static, a ringing explosion in the distance, and a wide-eyed Natasha screaming his name.

**I'll tell you honestly I haven't decided on whether Hawkeye lives or not. Depending on how the story goes, some of your favorite Avengers _may_ disappear. I will be free to kill in this. So, does anyone have really, really strong opinons on whether I should kill/save anyone? I do take them into account.**

**You know, by the wonderful, loving, interesting reviews you're all giving me, I can really see how loved this story is!**

** I hope you heard the sarcasm. So... does anyone _actually_ want to read this story? Anyone?**

**Sorry if I'm being obnoxious. But I really don't know whether this thing could use improvement or not. What if I'm getting everything wrong and I don't know it? Tell me, people! Give me suggestions! If you don't like it, if you absolutely hate it, tell me! I can take it! Or, if you love it, I'd be happy to hear that too.**


	7. Asha's back, and so is Natasha :

"What did you mention about... 'handling the Edona's'?" Loki smirked, his cool and smug expression hiding elation and extreme satisfaction. His scepter! Asha got his scepter! YESS! (AN: I can guarantee Loki would be thinking those exact thoughts in this situation)  
"Shut it, Loki," She growled. Natasha's face betrayed no fear nor hatred, but her voice and eyes were livid with it. "Of course you'll never love Asha. You have a heart of ice, you vile monster!"  
Loki could see there was no knowledge behind these words, only hate and desperation, but nevertheless, they hit home. He winced, very slightly, at the words, but the Black Widow did not notice. He was not a god. He was a monster. A Jotun, a frost giant, of all creatures. And raised as an Asgardian, no doubt. A life lived as a lie. Natasha was prodding at a still open wound. It had only been so recent that Loki had discovered the truth about his origins. All those years, wondering why he was treated so differently. Why Thor was always the favorite son. All Frigga and Odin's happiness, their love towards Loki, was never pure. Heart of ice...  
No, Loki could love Asha, if he wanted, if he chose to. But if Asha got past the lies that Loki, the very god of mischief and dishonesty, shrouded himself in, would she choose to love him?

"On your guard, gentlemen," Natasha ordered, her guns raised. Her back was turned, but Loki could easily guess the emotional war playing across her face. Denial, desperation, and anger, lots of anger, fighting control and the urge to keep a cool head.  
"Ah, I feel your pain, Natasha," Loki sighed silkily. "considering the Hawkeye did work for me for a time... Though he was quite attached to you, actually."  
"He's not dead, you bastard," Natasha replied, her voice mean but very stable, surprising Loki a bit.  
"Of course not," The liesmith rerouted himself. "He's capable enough not to leap senselessly into the fire. But, you know, if he isn't already, he most certainly will be. I'll be sure of that."  
"You will not distract me, Loki," She said, calmly. Much too calmly. Oh, right. She was faking it. She didn't know if Clint was alive or not. Denial... Denial, denial, denial. Such a childish way to escape the truth. A weakness. Not strong enough to accept a simple concept.  
"Ma'am, we have visual contact," A SHIELD agent spoke to Natasha.  
There she was. Asha Edona. Loki could see her running down the stainless white hall, a tiny figure growing larger as she came closer to them. On her right, the golden staff was clasped in her hand, the electric blue orb at the end bright with energy. His scepter. He could see the black sketchbook tucked under her arm. She must have drawn it, the scepter. But when did she have the time? From the moment Loki knew she retrieved the book to now only occurred over a course of maybe ten minutes. That was certainly not enough time for her to complete all the drawings that she did. Maybe she already had them drawn...  
On her left was another figure. Loki supposed this was her brother, Austin, though they shared absolutely nothing in terms of family resemblance. Already, from Loki's distance, he could see Austin was much taller than his sister, with lighter brown hair, nearly blonde, much wavier. He was dressed in a typical SHIELD agent uniform, carrying a large gun.  
"Set weapons to stun," Natasha ordered. "We're not here to kill them," Several clicks of guns followed. The Black Widow released a breath. "Fire at will, boys,"

"Loki!" Asha's cry was not fearful or tearful, as Loki was expecting, but rather, the type of tone you would hear followed by "Catch!" or, slightly more appropriate for the next event, "Thinkfast!"  
Loki looked her in the eye, she was now less than thirty feet from him, and gave a slight nod to acknowledge her.  
Asha raised the scepter and Loki tilted his head in mild interest. That weapon released vast amounts of energy in each orb it fired. It had more or less the strength of Iron Man's arm cannon. But unlike that cannon, there was no earthly technology to stabilize the energy from each burst. This was a different energy. Loki could wield his scepter with similar ease to Captain America with his shield or Thor and his hammer, thanks to his origins. Asha, though, was a different, weaker, story... Was she really able to handle its power?  
Loki was about to receive his answer, but then the bullets went flying. Small bangs sounded from the guns, echoing down into the pit below. Asha ran forward in a quick burst of speed, diving off to the side to reach a doorway, avoiding the shots.  
Austin was a different story. He dropped to the ground to escape the firing, but instead of hiding, he returned the bullets. Loki's eyes caught on Natasha moving like a cat, dodging Austin with undeniable grace. The agent who was next to her was less lucky, taking the shot and falling to the ground.  
"Austin!" Asha called, her head appearing from behind the doorway. "Don't shoot Loki!"  
"You got it," Austin mumbled. "I'd hate to hurt your godly boyfriend," His tone was rather sarcastic. Loki knew Austin was not in this for the god's sake. It must be for the second person in this plot, Asha. He was here to protect his little sister. That was it. And that was a problem. He had no loyalty to Loki, and Loki would need to change that.  
"Loki! Aussie! Heads up!" Asha yelled, scepter raised. Loki watched the scene slide by in slow motion... A ball of blue light shooting from the staff... It flew straight down the hall, connecting with a terrified SHIELD agent... An explosion of white and blue light spreading outwards, blowing back the other agents into the abyss beneath Loki.  
But Loki wasn't watching the agents. He was looking at Asha. The blast must have sapped away much of her strength, for she had crumpled to the ground. Her droopy limbs and hunched posture greatly resembled a wilting flower.  
Austin didn't seem to notice; he was typing in a sequence on the control panel. Thankfully, it was still intact and functioning after the small explosion.  
Loki's platform jerked forward, moving over to the hall. Austin turned away, rushing over to his sister. The god did not follow as eagerly, surveying the damage. Only two SHIELD agents were still in the hall, both down and unconscious. The rest had been blown off into the darkness below. Of course, Agent Romanoff had been smart enough to be on the less dangerous side of the blast. She was unconscious, her red hair splayed out across the white floor (it had grown out quite a bit the last time Loki had spoke to her), but she was still alive.  
"Asha," Austin was kneeling next to his sister. But she was only looking at Loki, tired but triumphant, holding out his scepter to him.  
"That was rash and foolish," He snapped, snatching it from her. She blinked in surprise. "You are a sorry little mortal, you hardly have the will to contain an explosion. It was only dumb luck you survived that." Asha stared at him, speechless. Her expression was pathetically easy to read; she was wondering where her god's amiable and rather comforting personality had gone.  
"That 'sorry little mortal'" Austin sneered, standing up to face Loki. "just rescued your sorry little ass, Loki... Again."  
"Austin," Asha warned, slowly standing up. "forget it. It's fine. I was being stupid. And we're all happy,"  
No, Loki was not happy. Asha loved him. He could not love her back. He did not want to picture Thor's smug expression if he knew he had fallen in love with a mortal, no matter how powerful that mortal was. Not in ten thousand centuries would Loki be giving his brother the satisfaction of setting up the two of them.  
Loki turned and walked back to Natasha, who was still unconscious. His scepter was clasped delicately in his right hand, the tip pointing to the Widow's chest.  
"Natasha," He hissed, nudging her shoulder with the toe of his shoe. Asha and Austin watched him silently. "Natasha..."  
Her eyes opened, green and wide with fear. She did not have time to react to his next actions.  
"Natasha," Loki hissed again, as he touched the point of his scepter to her heart.  
"It's your turn,"


	8. Pfff, more stuff, what else to say?

**Thanks for all the reviews and favs! I feel loved! :D**

Loki heard Asha suck in a fearful breath as Natasha Romanoff's eyes went completely black. She shifted, standing up, facing Loki with a rather blank expression. Her darkened eyes slowly receded to an unnatural electric blue. She was now under Loki's command, just like her partner, Hawkeye, had been only a handful of years ago. Time to switch places, give the other one a turn on Loki's side of the battle.  
"Is she...?" Asha's voice quivered nervously.  
"I've corrected her loyalties," Loki said.  
"You-" Austin growled, rather angry. He was clearly not used to such power, having such a simple mind that could not process Loki's power. It couldn't accept it, only fear it. "Corrected- You what? If you even think of touching me or Asha-"  
"Asha?" Loki inquired softly, turning to the overwhelmed girl. "Is your brother going to be a problem?" He shifted his grip on the scepter, watching her eyes flick nervously to it. Austin had fire. He was clearly not thinking much before the words leapt from his tongue. He had a strong will, and Loki did not like his attitude very much. That man needed a tap of the scepter, no doubt. Though, unfortunately, the look in Asha's eyes was simply _begging_ Loki not to hurt him. He supposed he could let the matter rest. For now.  
"No," Asha said softly, her eyes even wider than usual, pleading the god. "Austin, you don't have to do this. You don't have to come with me,"  
"I think I do," He said, glancing darkly at Loki, like he was warning him. He was protecting Asha. He was going, not for Loki, but to make sure his sister was safe from the god. Loki nearly winced as something seemed to stab him in the side. Not literally, not physically. An emotion, one the god did not like hanging around him. It was like a crueler side of of sadness, longing. It was jealousy, for Austin's loyalty to his sister. Loki wanted to punch himself for that. He was not supposed to be jealous of mortal family ties. He didn't need a family. He didn't...  
"Then let's go," Natasha cut in. Loki blinked, turning to the Widow, who was taking the lead. He looked at Asha, ready to follow behind him, and then to Austin. Austin was staring darkly at Natasha. She was, naturally, the control, the higher ranking. And that would bother Austin a bit. Something a little bitter flickered over his face. They were both leaders, in their minds, in the current situation. To them, authority was an issue, and neither was going to back down. Yet.  
Interesting, Loki thought. He could play around with this, experiment with this cute little relationship. After all, being the god of mischief, it was sort of his job. Even among his allies, he liked stirring up a little chaos. It was just so _fun_, so entertaining, to mess with their puny little minds. Addicting, even.  
Natasha and Austin held each other's gaze for a fiery split second, before the Widow broke the eye contact and turned to walk over in front. Austin had not retreated, only watched her back with daggers in his eyes. Though he said nothing to deny her the control. She took the lead down the hall with the rest of them following, still a little ruffled with each other, behind her.  
There was a half-minute of semi-peace before the sound of footsteps, many footsteps, echoed across the far end of the hall. The still air, even if not entirely pleasant, was shattered.  
"Squad," Natasha and Austin said softly, in complete unison. They gave each other a look, before diverting their gazes to the hall.  
"Asha, can you duck behind that doorway again or something?" Austin directed her, motioning to it with his head. "Let the big kids handle this,"  
Asha snorted a bit, rolling her eyes muttering "big kids" with a smile. She moved quickly and safely moved herself out of the line of fire. Loki looked to make sure she was securely out of the way. He couldn't have his most powerful weapon damaged in a situation she couldn't handle. Satisfied with her position behind the doorway, he turned down the hall.  
There was the squad. Seemed like quite a lot of agents to be just a squad, but Loki was at a loss for a word to describe it. Not too many to be an army. Small army? Hmm, still too big. Large squad? Bit of an understatement, but it would have to do. A large squad was thundering towards them.  
"Natasha?" Loki inquired. He tilted his head toward the large squad. "Care to do the honors?"  
"As always, Your Highness," She replied wryly, with a quick turn of the head that made her hair swish elegantly around her catlike face. Loki decided he liked her longer, smoother hair that she had now. Very feminine. Very pretty. An absolutely _exquisite_ color.  
Austin was giving Loki a look. His fine-haired eyebrows were knit together in annoyance, and the line of his mouth was slightly scowling. No, he did not like the fact that Loki was ignoring his abilities as a high-ranking field agent, giving "the honors" to the lady. Even if he didn't like Loki in general, this was clearly a kind of man who cared about his pride and power. Seeing him stare in annoyance at the god made the edges of Loki's lips curl discreetly in satisfaction. Like a cat playing with a ball of yarn, their minds were his toys.  
As Natasha ran down the hall, Loki saw-and nearly laughed at-the mixed expressions on the SHIELD agents' faces. Surprise and shock, mixed with horror, fear. They knew she fought like a demon, faster than lightning, and as graceful as a cat. And even with all that, she still retained absolute sexiness. And now she was on Loki's side. That's something to fear.  
Bullets went flying. Natasha was right in the middle of the fray, so most guns were aimed in her direction, but a few people actually had some sense and decided not to kill one of their best shadow agents and remember the reason they came down here in the first place. So that means Loki and Austin were both targets.  
Austin shifted the grip on his gun. It was very purposeful, as he was clearly trying to get Loki's attention, send him a message.  
"Do you feel as though you need an invitation to jump in alongside Romanoff?" Loki said in a rather bored, but inquisitive tone, not even bothering to look at him.  
Austin scowled, opening his mouth to say something, but then thinking better of it. He scowled again, in a way that would have made lesser people become taken aback, and then lifted his gun and pointed it down the hall. Loki could see his marksmanship before the trigger was even pulled. His stance was so strong and steady, his eyes taking in the scene, the friends and foes, and translating them to targets.  
Austin jumped across the hall to avoid another line of fire. Loki could see his destination: another doorway to hide and shoot from. He was a sniper, not the jump-into-the-middle-of-the-battle person Natasha could be.  
Speaking of which, Natasha was making pretty good work of the SHIELD agents. However, considering the sheer number, she wouldn't last very much longer if Austin didn't start firing soon. Still, she fought as fiercely as demon spawn, to sum up what we've been missing. Loki saw her throwing agents to the floor, sliding or somersaulting under legs to kick or punch the undefended backs, dodging bullets and punches alike, letting agents aim for her but hit a team member instead. Loki could watch her catlike fighting for an eternity. It was some of the greatest entertainment.  
Still looking down the hall, (any bullets coming his way couldn't pierce his armor) Loki felt the dark, wide eyes of Asha Edona fall on him. Fall on his eyes, following their gaze. Finding who he was staring at. And then looking down at the ground in crestfallen silence.  
Well, this annoyed Loki rather a lot. More than he thought it would, actually. Asha, being a mortal and assuming the god was watching Natasha because of romantic interests. That he was choosing the red hair and smooth elegance over her. Women...  
But Loki was also a little sad for his little ally. He had been quick-tempered, childish and hateful, and he had let his anger for Thor's infringement on his love life to be taken out on poor Asha. Now he was just crushing her feelings by watching Romanoff and not saying a word to her.  
"Asha," Loki said, finally turning to her. She looked up, pushing her hair behind her ear with the back of her hand, and Loki's silver tongue turned lead. He knew Asha must have used blood, as she said she would, to primarily contact him, but now Loki actually saw the marks of where she got her ink.

**My own characters disturb me. Does that ever happen to you?**


	9. These chapters are all the same

**Summer's cruel. Sorry for taking so long.**

Sliced across Asha's palm... The dull, scabbed-over hatch lines showed every touch of needle to skin. The lines were a dull, rusty color, but Loki could easily imagine them as a vivid red. And the pain. He'd experienced worst, of course, but self-inflicted pain... Didn't that hurt so much more, knowing you were willingly ready to damage yourself? But it wasn't all Asha's fault...  
Loki couldn't understand why he was so taken aback by the sight. He had seen worse injuries. As we speak, he listened to the sounds of war, of Austin proving his marksmanship, of Natasha tirelessly taking down people she used to work with. But this... It must have been because it was someone as innocent as Asha. That had to be it. That was all. That was... no... it wasn't.  
"That was my fault," Loki didn't mean to say it aloud, but it slipped out anyway. He cursed silently to himself, not understanding how he had lost control of his words. Caring about her may only give her or Thor the wrong idea.  
Asha looked down at her palm, getting what he was saying. Her eyebrows pinched together, as if trying to find an appropriate response to this.  
"I don't care," She said casually, offhandedly, eyes darting away to watch the fighting. Away from Loki. How simple she sounded! Did she not understand what Loki had made her do for him? Clearly, her loyalty was undoubtable, but to go that far, it was heartbreaking.  
Yes, but_ I_ care, Loki was glad to regain enough control not to say that. He did care, and he wanted to tell Asha this, but expressing any type of affection for this girl, any concern for her wellbeing...  
Oh yeah. That was another thing that was his fault.  
"Asha, earlier," Loki sighed. He couldn't believe he was apologizing for something as inane as this. Considering all the other out-of-character stuff he had done, though, this probably wasn't all that bad. "I think I lashed out at you when my anger had really been intended for another."  
"I know." Asha said. "Thor's trying to set us up," Loki wasn't too surprised she already knew. News like that probably spread like wildfire across the gossiping mortal tongue. However, her voice seemed to catch in a strange way on Thor's name, and Loki could see the look in Asha's eyes when she recalled the event glaze over in a different sort of way then what he might expect. He could just tell. He was a reader, the best there was.  
"And you heard this from..?" Loki asked.  
"Straight from the horse's mouth." Asha smiled. Loki stumbled over that expression, staring at her blankly. "Thor himself," she stated. Thor. Thor came to Asha, to see how _she_ was faring, while his brother was imprisoned, only a floor below her. He didn't want to be jealous, he didn't want to admit he envied Asha in any way, but Thor was pushing it. The thunder god was pushing it far beyond Loki's zone of calamity.  
"And how is the thunder god?" Loki asked with a bit of a hiss. "He seems not to have time for me," Asha looked at him sadly, understandingly. She said nothing about it, but they both knew she felt sorry for him. The liesmith, not wanting pity of any kind, narrowed his eyes, warning her off. She looked to the ground.  
"He's bent on the idea that we would be the perfect couple," Asha said, trying to sound annoyed, but Loki could see the smile hiding in her eyes. Of course she liked it. As responsive as she was to Loki, _off course _she would be glad there were those who promoted her feelings towards him. But this was so unnecessary, the whole setup, though nothing would ever change Thor's mind. Ever. "Though it's mainly structured around the fact that I'm the only mortal on Earth willing to go within four feet of you."  
"You aren't mortal," Loki said firmly, sure of it. Besides, he didn't want her to be. He didn't want a weakling willingly bowing at his feet, he wanted someone with power and use. "You just can't be. I don't know what you actually are, but you are far greater than mortal." Asha paused.  
"Is that a compliment...?" She asked, uncertain.  
"It is," Loki assured her. "Mortals are unruly and significantly weak."  
"Should I take the word of the god of lies?"  
Loki smiled, letting out loose "hah" of laughter. "Never. But now, I give you the truth,"  
Asha grinned. "Thank you for your honesty, Loki,"  
"If you two aren't too busy smiling at eachother," Austin called out, reloading. "they don't exactly seem to be dwindling in numbers." He was right. A thin but steady stream of agents were coming from the lift at the end of the hall as replacements for the fallen.  
Loki, rather ticked off (but thankfully not showing it) about Austin's comment, raised his scepter to fire. He should _not_ have made a fool of himself just then. Wasn't he supposed to be proving he wanted nothing to do with Asha?  
"I do not like your brother," Loki said, taking the scepter and willing it to shoot the same blue-white orb down to the agents. The blue sphere at the scepter's top glowed, and from its pulse came the orb of destruction.  
Natasha saw this and slid out of the explosion's range, even swifter than Loki could have hoped. He also saw Austin jump in shock as it flashed by his face, mere inches from hitting him.  
Let's call that a warning shot, Loki decided.  
The orb collided into the back of an unlucky someone's head, and released its destructive energy from that point. SHIELD agents were blasted into the walls, outward from the explosion. It shook the hallway a bit, even sprinkling some smoky dust to the ground.  
When the dust settled, all the SHIELD agents were lying down, splashed around the room at uncomfortable angles. Loki, stepping forward to examine the damage, saw the closest to the explosion's heart were dead, the rest unconscious.  
"Nice shot," Asha said softly, coming out from behind the doorway she had been hiding behind. It was hardly a shred of praise, but Loki smiled to himself, behind his impassive expression.  
Austin, (surprise, surprise) did not share his sister's feelings. He effortlessly found a way to twist Loki's small victory into a flaw.  
"And you just couldn't have done that earlier, could you?" He accused. "That might have saved a good amount of time, you know,"  
"It is not that I couldn't," Loki replied smoothly, matching Austin's gaze. "It's just, the entire time, I was debating on whether or not to aim at the squad or at your tiny, disrespectful head."  
Asha looked away, in embarrassment, Loki saw, her hunched posture indicating she was ashamed of the two of them. But she was a bit of a pushover, unconfident and much too timid to say anything about it.  
"Gentlemen, please," Natasha cut in. "Is this necessary?" Loki's annoyance spiked, seeing as Natasha was acknowledging both of them as the source of trouble when it was clearly Austin who was creating these problems. But that was a childish and immature thing to say, so Loki kept his mouth shut. He learned eons ago that something like a tattletale was never smiled upon. It was always Thor smashing things and making the mess when they were children, but it was always Loki who got the hard looks from the maids. He'd always get that same, displeased, disappointed look from Odin whenever Loki tried to tell on his brother. Odin never liked hearing him complain. So Loki got smart and shut up about it, but that didn't stop him from getting a little bit of vengeance on Thor. He learned that a few silky words rolling off the silver tongue could easily throw his aggressive, arrogant brother into more trouble than loud complaints ever could. And so, Loki became a master of mischief and lies.  
(AN: At least, that's how I see it)  
"Come on, Loki," Asha turned to him. Natasha was leading once more, with Austin more or less next to her. Asha was facing her god, but definitely on the verge of walking away. Loki had been too lost in thought to see the group already leaving. His thoughts, always leading from one thing to the next, never stopping, never letting up. Distracting him, always drawing him away from the real world. Maybe Asha wasn't all that crazy with her biting.  
"Of course," Loki said, striding beside her, though looking straight ahead.  
"The lift's empty," Natasha observed, looking into the elevator. "They've stopped coming through here, but we could encounter more agents upstairs."  
"Let's take an emergency exit," Austin suggested. "Agents don't use those for attack. It would set off an alarm, but considering all we've done so far, it would be lost among whatever alarms are going off on the upper level."  
"And they are the fastest way out of here," Asha pointed out softly.  
"Good idea." Natasha nodded at the two of them. A bit of a wall, invisible but nearly tangible in Loki's mind, formed between him and his allies. They were in power here. They knew what they were doing. Even Asha could contribute. But this whole place was unfamiliar, alien to Loki. He completely and utterly relying on these three people, two of them mortal and one in question. He needed to trust them to get him where he needed to go. Only one and maybe another was completely on his side. Only one had real power. Only one had real information on the Avengers. The other was nearly useless. Everything was unbalanced. Loki was not confident in his allies, but for now, they would have to do. They were all he had. For now.  
Natasha continued to talk tactics. "We'd need to take the exit branching off of the left wing, near all those old labs and stuff. My car's on the lot above it. I've got a plan from there."  
"Right," Austin said, his voice sounding a little more let down. His satisfaction from his good suggestion seemed to be wearing off now, now that Natasha was once again taking over.  
"Then follow me," The black clad agent pushed through them, in the opposite direction of the lift. Once again, for something like the fifth time, the rest of them followed behind her.  
Down the hall, the four walked quickly, the only sound echoing across the walls were their hurried footsteps. Mixed expressions on each face. Natasha was undeniably in control, calm and determined. Austin's eyebrow appeared to be permanently angled down in frustration and anger. Poor little Asha, dwarfed by her own minute size, was looking overwhelmed. Like this was too much for her to handle. Like she was just a child.  
"Chin up, Asha," Loki murmured, looking down at her. She met his gaze, uncertainly. "Let's set a bit of determination on that face, shall we?" She gave a weak smile, then looked away, her eyes cast down to the floor. Loki couldn't help but notice her eyelashes. He liked how long they were, how elegantly they framed her eyes. That was something about Asha, Loki noticed. She wasn't outwardly beautiful, but little things, her eyelashes, the shape of her lips, the shine of her hair, once noticed, actually made her look very nice. Asha wasn't curvy, or even noticeably thin, but her slimmer figure suggested an air of elegance. Her skin wasn't smooth or flawless, marked with small, unflattering scars, but the pale color was actually pleasing to Loki. Now that he finally saw these things, he realized how lovely she seemed. Delicate, not weak.  
"You're... staring." Asha had shifted uncomfortably under Loki's gaze. She wrapped her arms around herself, pressing the sketchbook to her chest.  
"Hm," Loki let out a small sigh. He hated apologizing for such meaningless of fences, so he wouldn't bother with it. Already, he had put himself lower than the girl with pointless apologies. He could not afford to go any lower. "I have my reasons. You have no use in questioning them." But he wasn't totally cruel, so he looked up and away to relieve her.  
"Oh," Asha's voice was soft. "Sorry." So instead, _she_ apologizes. How was it that she still acts like the perfect subject? Loki was enjoying Asha's company more and more.  
Loki caught Natasha looking back at them, something glinting in her eyes. Curiosity? Hm. Something of the sort. Mingling with... satisfaction.  
The Black Widow steered them to the right, into a large lab room. It was empty, with a few tables and equipment scattered about the place. At the end of the room was a black door marked EMERGENCY EXIT, DO NOT USE in bright red lettering. Too late. They were using it.  
Natasha pushed it open, and all around them, an alarm rang out. A very loud alarm, at that. It was an annoying, continuous ring that rattled in Loki's ears. Mortal contraptions were so noisy. Cars, planes, construction tools, and just about everything else. You could never find silence on this planet. Well, that would be one thing he would most definitely change as their king.  
Behind the door was a flight of stairs, which the four began climbing up. In this space the ringing was so much louder as it echoed across the walls.  
"I don't remember drill alarms being so loud," Austin remarked offhandedly. Even if it was just some way to make conversation, he did notice. Natasha nodded.  
Well, it was going to give Loki brain damage if he listened any longer.  
"Silence," He commanded the air in a hissing undertone. And, to his surprise, the noise ceased, as if muffled by an invisible force. It just disappeared. Good, Odin hadn't gotten rid of all Loki's magic abilities.  
The three paused, looking around in question. All gazes finally landed on Loki.  
"Did you do that?" Asha asked, sounding slightly amazed.  
"You sound surprised," Loki remarked without interest. "I'm a sorcerer, and that alarm was annoying. Let's continue, shall we?"  
"Loki-Doki," A new voice, a- no, not again. "you just can't stay in one place, can you? And you know, just cuz you took 'Tasha instead of Hawky isn't convincing anyone you're straight."  
Tony Stark.

**I just always leave off with Tony, don't I?**

**Hey guys, my friend (another one of Loki's army) on deviantart drew a couple (so far only 3) pictures for this fanfic. She also designed the cover. While she isn't quite as good an artist as Asha... she's good! here's the link for the gallery:**

** gallery/32819389#**


End file.
